The setup has been working perfectly with no flaws till I cleaned it the other day like I would normally do with just canned air. The pc will not boot now. The only response I get from it is that the MB lights power on. no fans spin, no PSU fan spinning, no drives spinning.

Also, if I leave the PSU on and MB lights on, the MB lights will start to flicker rapidly after so long.

I did plenty of tests, pulling piece by piece and same results. I stripped it down to the MB and PSU and still get the flickering MB lights result. So i decided to test out the PSU with a paper clip and shorted the green/black wires and the PSU started fine with fans spinning.

Could it be the MB? Is there any safe ways to test the other components? Also, my Asus MB has a power switch on the MB itself so i don't need the power switch connected from the case. Any ideas/help would be appreciated =). Thx.

Sounds like it might be a dead motherboard indeed. Did you touch it at all? Perhaps the result of static electricity ? I can't really think of what would else might cause it to fail so suddenly during a routine cleaning.

Yeah, I've tried as much as I could unplugging/plugging everything n still that same response. I appreciate the responses from you guys and hopefully it is just the MB and nothing else.

When I was cleaning it, I do remember touching a metal heat spreader on the motherboard to get a piece of dust off...maybe that sent a shock through? I didnt feel anything or hear anything but who knows? Could something that simple blow it?

Thanks for the responses....I hope the MB is truely the problem cuz I RMA'd it 2 weeks ago and about to get it back...I posted here cuz I wanted to see if I did the right things. Hopefully it works out when I get it back....

Last question....To test it out when I get it back, will plugging just the PSU to the MB and trying the power on switch on the MB give me any response to see if its working? Whats the very least MINIMAL components i'll need to get a response from the MB?

I could be wrong on this because it's been a while since I've read anything about ESD safety but, I think I remember reading it only takes a 100v charge to cause motherboard failure. It's not abnormal for us to carry much, much more than that.

By plugging the PSU (which is attached to the wall outlet and is on) into the motherboard, the green LED should light up, however, your PC won't turn on. I could be wrong on this as well, but you'll need at least the CPU and RAM along with the PSU and motherboard to actually have the PC power on (you won't have display and it's not going to find an OS though, obviously).

Sounds good Zeno...So, just the MB, PSU, CPU, and at least 1 stick of RAM is all needed to just get a response? I don't mind not booting into OS or anything else, I just want a living response from the MB and that'll tell me my MB was fixed through the RMA and better than what it was b4 i sent it =P. Will i need any Fans plugged in for the response? I heard a CPU fan is needed to be plugged into the MB for any response but I don't know for sure.

Remember, I'm not looking for an actual full boot, just some response from the MB when i hit it's power button on the MB. (such as fans to start in the PSU). That would prolly be the only response I'd get but that would be better than before.

Even the earliest stages of the boot process are dependent the CPU and RAM. Here's a quick look at just a few of the initial stages that occur:

User switches on electrical power to the system.

The PSU performs a POST. When all voltages and current levels are acceptable, the PSU indicates that the power is stable and sends the Power_Good signal to the motherboard. The time from switch-on to Power_Good is normally between .1 and .5 seconds.

The microprocessor timer chip receives the Power_Good signal, which causes it to stop generating a reset signal to the microprocessor.

The microprocessor begins executing the ROM BIOS code, starting at memory address FFFF:0000. Because this location is only 16 bytes from the very end of the available ROM space, it contains a JMP (jump) instruction to the actual ROM BIOS starting address.

The ROM BIOS performs a test of the central hardware to verify basic system functionality. Any errors that occur are indicated by audio "beep" codes because the video system has not yet been initialized.

Thx zeno...1 more question for that matter....Will i have to mount it all in the case before i try out those parts together? Or can I put those parts together on my desk and try to power on without any problems? The only thing I'd add is of course the MB tray to the MB for the heatsink to attach itself to.

I'll prolly just hook it into the case anyways to ensure no other problems to occur but I was just wondering if I don't have to mount it because, at the moment, all my components are out of the case.

So....PSU, MB, heatsink completely installed, CPU, 1 stick RAM....I'll try that out and see if the PSU starts when I get the MB back from RMA...(It's in "Ready for shipping" status so I'm excited lmao)....Thanks for the help.

As long as the motherboard is properly attached to the removable tray with stand-offs, it should be fine. I just wouldn't leave it on for too long as there probably won't be any air moving over the chipset etc. If you want to play it safe, have a standard house fan blowing toward the set up just to get the air moving.

If your PC still won't power on, at least you've narrowed it down to three components .

You the man Zeno...Best responses and FAST responses for that matter. Thanks a lot sir. Gave me much confidence on getting this thing working again and how to do it. I'll try it all out and let ya know ;-).

No luck...I got a new MB from ASUS today and installed my CPU/heatsink/PSU and still got the same issue with the LED lights flickering and no post.....I think I have a PSU problem now....but, my PSU starts when I short the two wires...could the PSU still be shorted and start but still be a bad PSU and not power my pc?

Ugh, this is so frustrating ...Haven't had my comp up n running in a month now.

I'm still in this same position...

CPU installed, heatsink, PSU, MB, 1 stick RAM....As I turn on the PSU, the MB lights light up and my LCD poster may read nothing or it may random between M's W's and 0's or some other wacky symbols....This is the same thing the old board did and this is now a new one. If i let the MB sit there powered on, the LED's and LCD will start to flicker rapidly like an electrical problem.

What else should I try? I mean should I try RMA'ing the PSU now? I tested that with a paper clip already and it powered up fine so what the heck?

Would even taking it to Geek Squad at a Best Buy help (prolly the only best PC place near me)?....I'm afraid of the lack of experience they may have though and then a further problem start.:suspiciou

Please, any more advice is appreciated, I'm lost now and sitting with a $3k doorstopper.

Unfortuntely, I do not have a spare PSU to test ...Maybe I'll try n take it somewhere n see if anyone can test it for me. If not, I'll just RMA that PSU....If that comes back n still doesn't work I'll try and contact where I bought it and see if they can work on it...Id have to ship it to CA from PA lmao:rolleyes: .....I swear I'ma get this thing working again lol.

Hey Zeno, could it be a grounding issue by chance? I've read that my PSU has a self ground but because I'm trying to get this pc running outside the case, would I need to have the grounding wire mounted to the MB?

Mmm, I could be wrong but I believe the PSU is grounded via the wall outlet.

You don't want the motherboard grounded if that's what your asking. From top to bottom it should be something like:

Screw // Non-conductive washer (unless your motherboard has the metal around the holes) // Motherboard // Stand-offs (making sure you line them up with the holes, no stand-offs should be directly touching the motherboard // Tray.